1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns a system for pasteurisation thermal treatment of foodstuffs, particularly leaf products.
2. Brief Description of the Art
More specifically, the invention concerns a system able making sterilisation thermal treatments on foodstuffs to be packaged, so as to extend the preservation period.
As it is well known, many foodstuff, particularly leaf products, are put on the market fresh with indication “Range IV products” within closed packagings and preferably kept within refrigerator.
It is known that these products are easily perishable, and have a very short shelflife, usually not longer than 1 week.
On the basis of the existing rules, the use of any chemical preserving agent is not permitted. However, market needing impose to increase the product shelflife, even maintaining intact the organoleptic characteristics such as odour, taste, colour and freshness.
Bacterial microbiological agents responsible of alteration of foodstuffs are generally bacteria and ferments, both of the aerobic and anaerobic type, living in a community on the foodstuff surface.
Activity of said microbiologic agents depends on their concentration and on different factors, such as acidity pH), temperature, salinity level and atmosphere composition.
It is known that concentration of bacterial flora present on a foodstuff sample has a variable run according to a logarithmic scale with temperature to which sample is subjected starting from a set starting concentration. Therefore, reducing said starting concentration of the bacterial microbiologic agents on foodstuffs to be preserved before their packaging, it is possible increasing preservation time of the same.